A WA construction business has been fined $5000 for producing a false home indemnity insurance certificate when applying for a building permit. 

Midnight Construction Group intended to mislead the City of Stirling in December last year, the Building Services Board says. 

The fake certificate had a manufactured policy number, and some details had been written over blanked-out text.  

Evidence showed Midnight Construction Group had not applied for the insurance, and it was not until March that the contractor provided a valid certificate.  

Builders are required to have home indemnity insurance for house construction projects worth more than $20,000. It protects against a builder being unable to complete or fix works due to death, disappearance, insolvency or loss of registration on financial grounds.  

“This conduct undermines the protections provided by WA’s home building contract laws and the overall integrity of the building approvals process,” state building commissioner Saj Abdoolakhan said.  

“Fortunately, the City of Stirling’s due diligence identified the inauthentic certificate, but if a building permit had been granted at that time, the homeowner could have faced substantial financial risks without the required HII cover.”